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Monday, 4 February 2019

Scargill - The Sector's Epicentre

Anyone sort of following this blog may well be aware of me trying to run a rather lackadaisical campaign set on (and around) the planet Scargill. For those with a smidge of interest I've decided to flesh out the background of the planet and surrounding system.

Scargill is the 3rd planet sunwards of the system (and sector) of the same name. The system contains five planets in total, four are habitable due to terraforming during the Dark Age of Technology. The planets are, from outermost inwards; Gruesome Discovery, Stuke, Scargill, Ghades, and Conflagratus. Conflagratus is the only planet in the system without a human population due to it proximity to the star; Scargill Big. Of the other planet in the system Gruesome Discovery is cold sparsely populated research facility, Stuke is an inhospitable desert planet that has ever been a penal colony and Ghades is a fertile jungle planet with a large reptilian indigenous infestation. Regular culls are launched every few years to keep the population down and provide combat training for Scargill PDF forces.

The planet Scargill is a vastly rich world in mineral terms it is a well populated industrial planet. Not designated as a Hive world it has a citizenry that rates in the 15 billion plus at the last census. Scargill was first inhabited by humanity during the Dark Age of Technology, but records do not show exactly when. The first colonists on Scargill were tasked with developing the abundant minerals and metals to trade with other Imperial planets, one such metal Neoduiron is famous throughout the sector as one of the finest material to make power weapons due to it's conductivity. Scargill is a class C gravity world making the pull a third greater than on Blessed Terra making the population slightly burlier than the Imperial norm but within Adeptus Administratum regulations.

Scargill is separated into three different provinces, one might call them countries due to their immense sizes Gremethorpe, Koverton and Orgreaves. A fourth province called Foote lies on the southern pole and is largely uninhabited due to highly unstable fluctuating radiation pulses caused by an anomaly in the poles ozone layer. There is a demi-province called Collierie, which is the residence of the current planetary governor. The current governor is Thatcher Magz as ruthless and callous an individual as it is possible to meet on a lawful Imperial planet. Magz has been the governor for over 70 orbits and she is likely to remain so indefinitely due to her wealth and arsenal of apothecaries. The land masses are separated by turbulent seas that contain vast amounts of edible aquatic creatures. Huge factory ships farm the seas but the sudden storms can sink even these 10 Km long vessels.

Thatcher Magz; draconian governor of Scargill.

Scargill society consists of millions of family units called shops that belong to greater collusions of citizens called unions. Unions govern small districts and generally oversee every aspect of life within that district. If one union needs outside assistance from another it will instigate a trade agreement or alliance. Alliances between unions are usually of a predefined duration but there are some exceptions. A common source of conflict is when two unions wish to enter into a trade agreement with the same party, these skirmishes are often called strikes and can be quite bloody.

The people of Scargill are rigid adherents to the Imperial Cult but very superstitious, particularly with regard to mining and other heavy industry. They are great believers in respecting the machinery or it will 'jinx' you. For many generations the mining unions have stated there is a lesser deity that watches over the population to ensure machinery is not mistreated. This is probably a corruption of the teachings of the Adeptus Mechanicus. A common threat for unruly children is the Tin Men will take you away in the night. Another common belief is common in the eastern province of Orgreaves, a form of ancestor worship that manifests mainly in the more remote areas, a creed that places the reverence of ones elders almost as important as worship of the Emperor Himself. A large number of folklore tales are of vengeful elders punishing disrespectful youths.

Due to it's wealth Scargill is regularly beset by void pirate raids from the nearby Tebbit Nebula. It is beleived that the pirates have criminal allies on the planet which enables them to launch successful raids and escape before the authorities apprehend them. There is also a guerrilla organisation that regularly sabotages Imperial facilities in an attempt to destabilise and ultimately overthrow governor Magz. Recently several xenos races have attempted to establish beachheads on the province of Gremthorpe. These include Tau from the Pur'La Sept, Aeldari from Biel Tan and a Necron force from an unknown location. A recent attack from heretic Astartes of the Death Guard chapter was beaten back at a heavy cost. It is also thought that Waaargh! Gitsmasha is currently making it's way towards Scargill. As a result of recent hostilities the Scargill Plantery Defense Force have been aggressively recruiting to replace casualties.